1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to temporary sunshields or shades designed to be placed in the windshield or side or rear window of a parked motor vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When a vehicle is parked in an open, unshaded area during the day, the sun's rays may be transmitted through the windshield or other windows of the vehicle for extended periods of time. In a manner similar to a greenhouse, the interior of a closed vehicle will retain heat and raise the interior atmosphere to relatively high temperatures. Such elevated temperatures may cause articles left inside the vehicle to melt, or the dashboard to discolor or crack, and the steering wheel or seats to become too hot to touch. The sun's rays also will fade or bleach upholstery fabrics.
Sunshields of the general type with which this invention is concerned are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,202,396 and 4,652,039. These patents feature foldable sunshields or shades provided with interconnected rectangular panels which are foldable in accordion style for storage and unfoldable into the shade for installation opposite or behind the window of a motor vehicle to block entry of sun rays through the window into the vehicle interior. When installed, the fold lines between adjacent panels are oriented perpendicularly or vertically relative to the bottom edge of the window. Thus, the fold lines of the device are parallel to each other and thereby are believed to effect an inherent tension which tends to collapse the shield or shade from its normal installed position.
A drawback of conventional shades is that, although the vertical accordion folds permit horizontal adjustability to accommodate variations in windshield length, no provision is made for variations in windshield height and slant relative to the dashboard. This is a significant drawback, since a shade which is wide enough adequately to block the windshield of a full-size automobile becomes bulky and unwieldy in a smaller compact vehicle. The standard width of conventional shades and their rearview mirror cutouts also fail to accommodate variations in rearview mirror size and position.
Other patents related to sunshade devices for vehicles are U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,546,438, 2,560,762, 1,018,498 and 1,421,716.
The sunshields embodying the invention is comprised of a series of hingedly connected or foldable panels of generally wedge or triangular configuration which contributes to adjustability in the span thereof when unfolded to accommodate variations in windshield height and slant relative to the vehicle dashboard and rearview mirror position also. This sunshade is suitable for installation across side windows or the rear window of the vehicle when suitably dimensioned.